A mobile phone user (R) reads to know about Vietnamobile services in Ho Chi Minh City (Photo: Khanh Van)

Mobile network Vietnamobile on Monday launched two cost-saving packages for calls and SMS inside the network.

The packages, called Maxi 18 and Maxi 24, are available to subscribers nationwide.

Maxi 24, which requires a registration fee of VND8,000 (less than US$0.5), allows users to make calls and send SMS all day long until midnight. Deputy CEO Nguyen Xuan Quan said the package was designed to target subscribers who need to communicate up to 6 hours in a day.

For those who need to communicate during the day time up to 6 pm, Maxi 18 is the package of choice to help them save money, Mr. Quan said.

Maxi 18 allows users to make on-net calls for free up to 3 hours till 6 pm. The registration fee is VND5,000.

“We have developed Maxi based on the feedback received from our customers,” he said.

Vietnamobile is a partnership between Hutchison Telecommunications International and local operator Hanoi Telecom. The GSM network, which was launched April this year, partners with global network suppliers Ericsson and Huawei.

In a press release issued on Nov. 9 in Hong Kong, Hutchison Telecom said its Vietnam operation reported a sound quarterly growth of 63.3% to a customer base of 1.02 million from the beginning of July to the end of September. The announcement said over 1,100 base stations were added in Vietnam in the third quarter, taking the number of base stations on air to 2,600.